The infamous words of Indians manager Lou Brown in 'Major League' to his team as they started to turn their season around. I found it a little fitting considering tonight, the Devils would like to get back to .500 and essentially hit the reset button on the season.
The time is now to get back on track.
Two nights after registering their first win of the season, the Devils look to get a streak going when they take on the Florida Panthers.
The team has been marred in inconsistency thus far. They haven’t gotten a solid 60 minutes of effort from anyone on the squad. Their power play is very hit or miss. Actually, its pretty much the first unit gets the best chances, the second gives up the best shorthanded chances for the opposing teams. Martin Brodeur, having his best effort thus far in the young campaign, has also been inconsistent.
Actually, there have only been a few constants in the season. Zach Parise and Travis Zajac have been consistently solid on the offensive front. Colin White has been consistently horrendous. And the team is almost consistently undisciplined, and their penalties have cost them valuable goals in two straight games.
Tonight, they take on a Panthers team who has also been inconsistent, and who are coming off a massacre at the hands of the Hurricanes last night. 7 Hurricane players were able to notch goals on the night. What better chance for the lines below the first to get valuable experience and finally get a goal or two.
While the rest of the team has not been shutout, Rob Neidermayer, Jay Pandolfo and Brian Rolston are the only 3 players not on the ZZ Pops line who have registered goals on the year.
The Devils will also look for Martin Brodeur to finally put together a solid effort on the ice. While his game against the Lightning was a vast improvement from the first two games, there were still parts of his game that looked noticeably rusty. In his defense, however, he faced an ungodly amount of shots, including 24 in the 2nd period alone.
Dainus Zubrus has been a pleasant surprise on the bottom 3 lines. While he has yet to register a goal, he has found a way to generate chances, but his linemates have been unable to pick up the rebounds and pounce on the chance.
Rob Neidermayer has also been a nice surprise, registering the opening goal against the Rangers and being a nice asset on the 3rd line. The rest of the team, however, is in need of making themselves known.
What better of an opportunity than against a team who lost their most valuable asset, all-star defenseman Jay Bouwmeester.
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